What to try next?

Curiosity piqued, I kept it for a while, then eventually bought myself 100ml of Habit Rouge. Loved it, and now it's nearly gone.

Then I bought 125ml of Pour un Homme. Bit disappointed with it, if I'm honest; it seems a bit one-dimensional, and I'm not the biggest fan of lavender. But I still wear it as a work-a-day because it's light and pleasant, and I think it's sensible to persevere. I don't hate it.

I recently bought some Hammam Bouquet (just 50ml, learning here) and while I prefer this to Pour un Homme, and do clearly like a powdery oriental, sometimes I can't help thinking all I smell of is babies. And for some reason too I keep thinking "liquorice", but have no idea why. I still like it, though, it's got something to it.

Anyway, I was in House of Fraser this weekend, and happened to spot the Guerlain stand. My little face lit up like a christmas tree. I tried Vetiver on one hand, and Heritage on the other. I thought I liked Vetiver at first, because all I could smell was spanking fresh leather, and that was a new experience, though after a while of sniffing my wrist, I did feel a bit sick. Heritage I preferred, I think, but it is quite sweet compared to Habit Rouge, and reminds me of Obsession for Men. Which I once had a small bottle off, and liked, but perhaps find a little sweet now.

I was kind of surprised and disappointed I didn't like these Guerlain fragrances, I guess I was hoping for at least one epiphany after liking Habit Rouge so much.

So now I feel a bit confused about what I actually like. I should probably also mention I tried Dior Homme last week, and found it way too sweet. I definitely don't like gourmands, and don't understand why anyone would want to smell like food. I also have some testers from Florascent, and liked the Vetiver, Santal and Habana, but not the dry Soleil herby one.

Oh, and I tried some Aramis Classic last week, wanted to like it, but while I can see what makes people like it, it hurt my nose after a while so that's definitely not me either.

Hmm.

I think basenotes is a great site, and find reading everyone's different opinions very interesting, but I have learned that smell is highly subjective and that perhaps over-analysis does not help me decide what I will like.

I've also realised I really lucked out with Habit Rouge as my first purchase.

Oh, I've tried Terre D'Hermes a few times too, and actually quite like it for its simplicity, so have an 8ml sampler on the way from Perfumed Court.

Sorry to ramble a bit, but if anyone has any comments or pointers, I'd be happy to hear them.

Re: What to try next?

Thanks noggs.

I have tried Pour Monsieur, and liked it, though it might be a little subtle for me. I will definitely try it again though, on its own rather than on a stick. I do like Fahrenheit, so will try the Absolute, and look out for the others you mention also.

Re: What to try next?

You might try Givenchy Gentleman and/or Monsieur de Givenchy. Both are timeless classics with very warm notes a la Habit Rouge (especially in Gentleman). Also look into Caron's Third Man, a velvet-smooth floral-oriental.

"It's not what you look like when you're doing what you're doing; it's what you're doing when you're doing what you look like you're doing."

CPM I've bought a sample of in Concentree, and like, though don't yet love. I think it might take a while; she's subtle alright.

Tiffany and Lalique I've found it hard to get samples of. Ebay is like $10 then same again for shipping from States. Tiffany customer services want your phone number; though their website form says it's optional, they then write to you and ask for it. Hmm.

Hi Ken. Dammit, that's more to add to my list!!! However, of these, I already have a few samplers:

Declaration I like and is perhaps more tolerable to me than Eau d'Hermes (I just don't get that, wish I did). Opus 1870 I've only worn a few times, need a few more goes, but nice. Endymion Man, is it just me or does this smell like fly spray? Only tried it once, but spent all my time thinking of the colour purple, fly spray/air freshener or something synthetic and trying to place it. Not overwhelmed, though I will try again. Much prefer Hammam Bouquet - more interesting than all other Penhaligon's I've tried, though I've not tried Castile yet.Mouchoir de Monsieur I had on yesterday. I really like the Habit Rouge and Heritage, but to me - at the moment - MdM is too much powder (babies covered in talc), little complexity to balance the sweetness, though with a tiny peep of Heritage somewhere.Jaipur Homme, right? Having read reviews for this, it sounds like I'd like it, and it's definitely on the to-try list.

Will look into Santos, No. 88 and Ungaro III too.

Thanks for recommendations though! All comments are, of course, only my personal opinion (i.e., please take no offense)

Re: What to try next?

Don't keep smelling your wrist (I suggest spraying once or twice a couple of inches above the navel so that it mixes with the air before it gets to your nose). I used to do that, and I developed a dislike for certain notes that way. It took me more than a year to recover from it for a couple of notes. Regarding what to do now, I suggest just buying samples and taking your time. "Burnout" seems to be a problem. More than a few BNers seem to have tried to do too much too quickly and felt they had to exit the scene. I realized very quickly that I needed to take my time and learn about different notes and genres. I think it takes 2-3 years to really understand frags on a deep level, and that is assuming you do quite a bit of sampling, but perhaps I am just a bit slower than others here. There are sites that sell samples and many BNers do too (including myself), so that's not a problem. Just be sure that you give your "nose" time to "evolve." Only sample the same frag every 2-3 weeks. If you do, you will likely perceive things that you didn't on the previous sampling. Have fun!